Heart and Soul
by kumikokat
Summary: 2010: Olive and Sheldon are reunited after fourteen years and start to change each others' lives again. The guys and Penny are shocked. Sequel to "Splendid Summer Days". Not necessary but highly recommended to read that first.
1. Reunion

**DISCLAIMER: Sadly, I do not own the big bang theory, nor do I own any of the characters, except Olive.**

_A/N: I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into this one. This is really just an introductory chapter, there is more to come. This story is a sequel to "Splendid Summer Days". I highly recommend you read that first, though I wouldn't go so far as to say you wouldn't be able to pick up the storyline. "XXX" signifies a break. Enjoy!_

Chapter One: Reunion 

Like most things, it starts with a knock at the door.

"Sheldon, there's someone here to see you!"

When he emerges into the living room, she's sitting there with his short roommate, wearing skinny jeans and an "I heart hobbits" tee. Her chestnut brown hair is tied in plaits, and there is a pair of headphones around her neck, the cable snaking around her body and disappearing into her back pocket.

His breath catches in his throat, and he forgets to take a breath. She stares at him for a moment. They sit there, in silence, taking each other in for what feels like an eternity, but not nearly long enough.

"Sheldon," she whispers.

"Olive."

She throws herself at him and he catches her in his arms.

"I missed you. I missed you, so much, Shelly. I'm so sorry I left. I tried to come back, I tried, but I couldn't find you…"

Sheldon is aware of a spreading feeling of damp on his shirt and realises that she is crying into his shoulder. He feels tears prick the back of his own eyes, blinks them away.

"I…missed you too," he says quietly, raising one shaking hand to touch her silky hair. She's really here. The girl he has been dreaming about for fourteen years is really here. The girl he had pretended to forget about, but had yearned for. The only girl he had ever loved. The only girl he understood, and the only girl who understood him, "more than you can imagine."

She has changed very little. She looks slightly older, is a bit taller (but still not as tall as Sheldon), and her features are sharper; but her skin is the same ivory shade, her hair smells the same; like strawberry and coconut, and she feels the same when he hugs her close.

"Are you going to leave again?" He can't stop himself from asking.

"As long as you want me, Shellybear, I'm never going away again," she says fiercely, but then a trickle of doubt leaks into her voice, "you do still want me, don't you?"

"Always," he tells her truthfully, releasing her from his embrace, "I have something to show you." He takes her by the hand, leads her to his bedroom. She goes to his chest of drawers, tracing her hands over all his little objects, photographs, action figures.

"I'm still trying to believe this is happening," she says, "I spent so long trying to get away from my mom, to find you, but you weren't in Texas anymore. We have a lot to talk about."

Sheldon is kneeling in front of a chest that sits at the foot of his bed. From it, he retrieves a novel, a notebook, an LP, and a small paper bag. Olive sits down on the bed, grazing each of the items with her fingers.

"You kept them all…" her voice is incredulous, and delighted.

But Sheldon isn't done. He opens his wardrobe and, like a magician revealing his trick, pulls away a blanket covering a bulky object.

"Shellybear!" She squeals, jumping to her feet and pulling the giant teddy bear towards her. "I can't believe you kept him. You're terrified of bears."

"And I bought this, not long after you left…" He reaches down and lifts, with some difficulty, a small record player. "But I could never bring myself to play our song."

Her hand covers his as they sit together on his bed, staring at their memories.

"Do you think we can rebuild what we had, Shellybear?"

"Of course," his brow furrows, "why shouldn't we?"

She smiles, relieved that he has not changed.

"After I left, Shelly, my mom and I went to stay with my aunt in Alaska. Mom became a die-hard feminist – she was always out at protests and stuff. She was in and out of jail for a few years. I was so relieved when I turned eighteen and could escape – I ran away to find you, but you weren't there, and the family in your old trailer couldn't tell me where you'd gone."

"I left them instructions _and_ a forwarding address!" Sheldon says angrily. "I knew those people were dumb as chimps."

"Why did you keep all this, Sheldon?"

He blinks at her.

"Because you asked me to."

Her eyes fill with tears again. She can't believe she's here, sitting next to the boy she's been fighting to reach since '95.

"No one's allowed in my bedroom, Olive, because I was scared they would find these things and ask questions," and as Sheldon says it, he realises that it's true, "and these were my memories, too special to share. Special in a good way, like you said about our elevated heart rates."

Olive picks up her old diary. The words "Olive's Log" are still there, in purple glitter marker, though they have faded a little. She flips through the pages. When she reaches the last pages, she finds the list she wrote of things she had never told Sheldon. Paper clipped onto that same page is a loose sheet of paper filled with Sheldon's spidery handwriting.

_Nine Things Sheldon didn't tell Olive, and should have_

_Olive is the only girl Sheldon has ever loved, and will ever love._

_Olive is the first girl Sheldon kissed._

_Sheldon doesn't like birds, because Olive doesn't like them._

_Sheldon likes monkeys, because Olive likes them._

_Shellybear the teddy bear is the only teddy bear Sheldon will tolerate._

_Sheldon cannot drive or take the bus because Olive is not there to take his hand._

_Sheldon cannot tolerate mess, because it reminds him of Olive's bedroom._

_Sheldon has read "Day of the Triffids" seventy-three times to date._

_Sheldon will never stop fighting to be with Olive, will never stop searching for her._

Olive chokes back more tears, but feels her heart fill with warmth. Some little part of her that was broken has been patched up.

"I live in Florida now. I got over my fear of blood, and now I'm a diagnostician."

"I'm a physicist."

"You were always going to be."

"Do you have to go back to Florida?" He sounds like a child, he knows, but that has never bothered him before.

"I don't want to." She closes her eyes, realising that she will have to leave sometime.

"Move in with me."

Her eyes fly open. "What?"

"Move in with me."

"Sheldon, that's crazy," she says, although it's breaking her heart, "we could both have changed a lot since the summer of '95-,"

"I haven't changed."

"No, neither have I." She bites her lip, thinking.

"I don't see why it wouldn't work. You don't want to leave, and I don't want you to go. This solution works for both of us."

"Well, I always was an impulsive person," she smiles, and her eyes shine, "yes, Shellybear, I would be delighted to live with you…I'm going to have to quit my job," and her eyes light up even more, and she laughs, "I get to quit my job!"

XXX

In the living room, Leonard hears the pretty girl giggle.

"What the hell?" He pulls out his iPhone, dials Howard's number quickly. "Wolowitz, you will not believe what just happened…"


	2. Did someone get him drunk again?

**Disclaimer: I do not own the big bang theory, or any of the characters, except Olive (sigh).**

Chapter Two: Did someone get him drunk again? 

Howard takes the stairs two at a time. As he rounds the corner, he notices Leonard standing just outside the open door of 4A, staring, shell-shocked, inside.

"What's so important that you had to-," he comes to a stop beside his friend, a slow look of horror spreading across his face, "what the frack?"

He has noticed a few things at once. First, there is a shiny black box on the coffee table, its lid propped up, and inside a vinyl record spins slowly round and round. He recognises the music as an old Blur song, but he has never liked Blur that much so can't think of the name. Second, Sheldon is in the middle of the room with a pretty girl. And they are _dancing_.

"Did someone get him drunk again?" He hisses at Leonard.

Behind them, the door to Penny's apartment opens and shuts.

"Leonard," she whines, flouncing across the corridor, "my toaster is broken. Can I use yours?" When he doesn't answer, she follows his line of sight. "Holy crap on a cracker…"

"Oh, Shellybear, I think we have an audience," the pretty girl giggles, grabbing Sheldon's left hand and pulling him to face the assembled group.

"Shellybear?" Howard mouths silently.

"Ah, yes. Olive, this is Howard Wolowitz and Leonard Hofstadter. They work with me at the university," Howard and Leonard both nod in greeting, "and this is Penny. She lives across the hall."

"Nice to meet you," Penny shakes the hand of the girl Sheldon called Olive.

"And you!" Olive says enthusiastically.

Leonard and Howard follow Penny into the apartment, a tad warily. Howard has the uncomfortable feeling of slipping into an alternate reality.

"So how do you two know each other?" Leonard asks, seeming to have regained the power of speech.

"Me and Shelly were together back in the day," Olive grins, "oh, wow, that makes me feel so old! _Back in the day_." She laughs again. "It's been…must have been at least fourteen years since we saw each other last."

"Olive is moving in," Sheldon announces casually.

"We never discussed that at the roommate meeting," Leonard says feebly.

"Oh, Leonard is your roommate, Shelly?"

"Yes. He doesn't whistle."

"Sheldon, can I talk to you for a minute?" Leonard asks, starting to walk towards his bedroom.

Sheldon follows him inside, and Leonard closes the door behind him.

"What's going on?" He asks.

"I imagine any number of things," Sheldon says thoughtfully, "you'll really have to be more specific Leonard."

"Who's that girl?"

"Her name is Olive Morrison. We knew each other in 1995. She's from Texas. And I love her."

Leonard almost chokes on his own saliva.

XXX

Raj brings Thai food for dinner. Olive's order is exactly the same as Sheldon's, but she still decides she wants one of his onion rings.

"No, put it back!" Leonard gasps.

"Yeah, trust me, I tried to take one of his onion rings once," Penny tells her sincerely, "I ended up being banished."

But it is too late, Sheldon has returned from the kitchen clutching three bottles of mineral water. He passes one to Howard, one to Leonard and keeps one for himself. Penny and Olive already have glasses of diet coke.

"Who took my onion ring?"

"It was Olive." Howard says immediately, shooting her an apologetic look. "Sorry, but I already have two strikes."

"Oh. Alright then," Sheldon says, in a tone Howard can't quite place.

He sits down in his spot and makes no fuss. Olive eats the onion ring and cuddles in close to him, lifting the takeout onto her lap. Sheldon puts his arm around her petite shoulders.

Howard, Raj, Leonard and Penny just stare.

"So, what are we watching?" Olive asks cheerfully, glancing at the TV, which is showing commercials.  
"A Star Wars documentary with commentary from George Lucas," Leonard informs her, a kind of longing in his voice, ignoring Penny's exaggerated groan, "do you like Star Wars?"

"Oh yeah," Olive grins, "I love ewoks."

"Ewoks," Sheldon mutters, "I thought your taste was better." But there is nothing serious in his voice.

XXX

The following morning, Penny awakens, bleary-eyed and fuzzy-minded, to the delicious smell of fresh coffee and French toast. She wraps her robe around herself, pulls on a pair of slippers, and stumbles across the hallway clutching her empty coffee mug.

When she opens the door, it is not Sheldon or Leonard standing in the kitchen; it is Olive, expertly flipping pancakes at the stove. She is drowning in Sheldon's robe, brown hair sticking up all over the place, but she looks oddly serene.

"Oh, hey Penny," she grins over her shoulder, "Sheldon warned me you might appear, so I made extra."

"Thanks, Olive," Penny says sincerely, walking over and leaning on the counter island, "so, did you stay the night?"

"Yeah," Olive nods, "you want pancakes, or toast?"

"Come on, that's too hard!" Penny laughs, and Olive laughs with her.

"Both it is," Olive stacks a plate high with toast and pancakes; each one cooked to perfection, and then retrieves a knife and some butter from the fridge.

"So…you and Sheldon, huh?" Penny hates herself for asking, but she just _has _to.

"Yeah," Olive takes a bite of her own pancake, closing her eyes as she savours, "hey, last night everyone was kind of…quiet. Do the guys not like me?"

"No, nothing like that," Penny assures her, "we were all just…a little surprised. Sheldon doesn't really have girlfriends. At least, he hasn't had one in the time I've lived here. No, that's not right, he sort of had one, but he didn't really know about it…"

"Yeah, I know Shelly can be a little strange, but he's special."

"Oh he's definitely special…" Penny mutters under her breath.

"So, uh, I was thinking of going jogging after breakfast. I usually do, and my running shoes are one of the few things I brought with me. Do you want to come?"

Penny is a little surprised, but if this Olive girl really _is_ going to be moving in with Sheldon, the least she can do is make an effort.

"Sure, I'd love to."

"You know, we could be friends. After all, we already know one thing we have in common."

"What's that?"

"We're both dating guys that we don't understand half the time."

Penny giggles.

"I know. When they start going on about physics, all I can do is try to nod along."

"I just put on a thoughtful expression."

They start swapping stories. By the time Leonard emerges from his room to see what is going on, the mere sight of him sends the girls into fits of hysterical laughter.

Olive feels much happier than she has in a long time.


	3. Pure Gold

Chapter Three: Pure Gold

Sheldon has lived with Leonard for a long time, pretty much since he started working at Caltech. And during that time, they have worked themselves into a quiet routine. The TV schedule, the shopping, who has what shelf in the fridge, where they eat every night, what restaurants they order takeout from and which they don't; it all combines to create a peaceful little island – a place Sheldon escapes to when the madness of the world gets too much, when he needs some structure and normality, when he needs something familiar to cling to.

But now the place is cluttered with boxes and the rooms seem…far more full. But, and it surprises him as much as it surprises anyone, Sheldon is not freaking out. He is not getting all panicked, all crazy. And he has not run off to his bedroom.

Sheldon has puzzled over the problem, and come to the conclusion that he doesn't need a routine to cling to, because now he has Olive. She is his island. She is his something familiar.

He hadn't seen her for fourteen years, and in the two weeks since she returned he had only seen her about twice. She'd been spending her time mostly in Florida, tidying up some last minute things and handing in her resignation. But Olive is the one person that, in his whole life, he feels he _knows._ And he knows that she hasn't changed. And he certainly knows that he hasn't.

Leonard told him "not to get his hopes up". He said that a lot can change in fourteen years. He said that Olive shouldn't move in. But Sheldon doesn't understand Leonard, he never has. (Not that he understands anyone completely; it is just that Leonard is particularly baffling.) His behaviour is erratic and unusual to Sheldon – a complex series of unprecedented decisions which are impossible to anticipate. It is not that he is just enthusiastic or excitable, like Olive, it is…something else.

Olive's things arrived today, on the back of a moving truck. She'd hired a moving team to carry everything upstairs. They moaned a bit when they saw the broken elevator, but she bribed them with tea, and now that they are gone she's in the kitchen, washing mugs.

"Be sure to wash them properly, one of them could have had some kind of mouth-related illness," Sheldon reminds her for the fourteenth time, removing a few books from a cardboard box and slotting them, in alphabetical order, onto the bookcase. He has made space my moving several of his own books and Leonard's into the far less full bookcases in their corresponding bedrooms.

"I did, Shellybear," Olive says cheerfully, setting the last mug on the drying rack and towelling her hands dry, "I'm gonna unpack my clothes, okay? Is there space in your wardrobe?"

Sheldon freezes. The thought of sharing his bedroom full time, even with Olive, after all these years, surprises him. He shakes the strange new feeling away determinedly.

"Yes. I don't have many clothes."

Olive laughs and grabs a box from the floor marked "clothes".

"Hey, how's the unpacking going?" Penny, still in her cheesecake factory uniform, enters the apartment without knocking.

"Yes Penny, come in," Sheldon says sarcastically, "…that was sarcasm."

"You got me," Penny smiles thinly, "do you need a hand?"

"Well, since you're offering would you mind giving me a hand unpacking my clothes?"

"But you're going in my bedroom!" Sheldon looks panicked. "Other people can't go in my bedroom."

"Okay, Shelly," Olive says serenely, unfazed, "I'll just leave my clothes until later. Penny can help me with some other stuff."

Olive rips open a box and Penny crouches down to look inside. It's full of random objects – snow globes, ornaments, photographs in pretty frames. One in particular catches her eye and she pulls it out.

"Is this…Sheldon?" She squints a little harder at the grainy picture. Sheldon looks up, surprised. Olive takes the picture.

"Oh yeah, that's us. That's…actually the last day we spent together. We were both fifteen, at the time."

"Wow, you haven't changed much." Penny looks at each of the four photos, clearly from a photo booth. In the first two, Sheldon looks serious, proper, pretty much like he always does. In the third, he is smiling, and even in the bad-quality photo Penny can make out a light in his eyes – one that she has never seen before. In the fourth, he and Olive are fooling around, pulling crazy faces. And, once again, there is that light in her eyes. Suddenly, Penny understands why Sheldon loves Olive so much. Any girl who can bring out this side of Sheldon is pure gold for him.

XXX

"I'm glad you're back," Sheldon tells her that evening, when they sit alone on the couch, watching Battlestar reruns. Penny and Leonard are on a date, and Howard and Raj are at Howard's eating brisket.

"I'm just happy to see you again," she wraps her arms around him, hugs his skinny frame. He reaches out and brushes his fingers over her chestnut brown hair, her smooth, pale skin. She's so perfect…

This is still alien to him. It's been a long time since he last felt like this. He's still not used to the shivers, the way his stomach twists when he sees her, the way his heart leaps when she smiles, the way when she laughs, he wants to laugh too.

And she enchants him. He would do anything for her.

"It's been such a long time since I felt like this," she says honestly, and just like that he's kissing her. It's been a while, but he finds he hasn't forgotten.

But then he hears her choke down a sob.

"Are you sad?" He asks carefully.

"No, I'm happy," she says through tears, "I'm living with you and we're together and…I've been waiting for this for such a long time. I've been waiting for you. And now you're here and…"

Sheldon has been with girls before. Penny was right (yes, there's the Vulcan hearing again), everyone has a deal. Even Homo Novus. But the others meant nothing – not compared with Olive. And he doesn't mean that the way his dad used to mean it ("I swear, Mary, it didn't mean anything!"), he means it for real.

When Leonard comes home, there is a tie on Sheldon's door handle.


	4. Salted Popcorn

_A/N: First of all, thank you to everyone who reviewed! Secondly, I know it has taken me longer than usual to update. I have been battling with my computer (more specifically I have been battling with iTunes and the Sims). You know what they say, trying to game without knowing your computer is like trying to run without knowing your legs. Also, I've been studying. A lot. Anyway, enjoy! _

Chapter Four: Salted Popcorn

Olive starts taking a few classes at the community college – English literature and history. And because she can't rely on Sheldon to provide for the two of them (on a physicist salary) she picks up a few shifts at the cheesecake factory with Penny.

Sheldon starts coming into the restaurant more and more often, but instead of sitting at his usual table, he chooses a new one in Olive's section. Penny tries not to let it hurt her, but it kind of does. She'd been Sheldon's waitress for years, and now she has been… discarded like a used tissue. The other waitresses are suitably shocked at Crazy Hamburger Guy having a girlfriend, but also kind of relieved that there is no danger of one of them having to serve him now.

Despite being the girlfriend of Crazy Hamburger Guy, Olive fits in with the other girls and they liked her for her fun, exuberant attitude and quirky personality. She is accepted into the fold much easier than Penny ever was, and this ruffles her feathers a little, but Olive is a hard person to dislike.

As well as shaking up the bathroom schedule, Olive has created a monster in Leonard by introducing him to _the Sims_. When he can drag himself away from the computer to watch TV with her and Sheldon, he finds himself once again thankful that she does not insist on switching up the TV schedule so that she can fit in shows like _Project Runway_, like Penny. She is perfectly content watching _Battlestar _with the guys. Although she has added in one show – _Stargate Universe _– which all the guys now love.

She likes the same music as them too. She can talk pop with Penny if she has to, but she likes Augustana as much as Leonard does, and she didn't make fun of Raj when she found the Wicked soundtrack on his album – she just sang along with all the songs. And while she does have a tendency to blare seventies and eighties music on Sheldon's dansette (and her own, more substantial record player) Leonard doesn't mind because she always turns it down if he asks.

When it comes to books, she has a lot of the same ones the guys do. A lot of H.G Wells and George Orwell and Isaac Asimov. And while she has a tendency to drag the guys to the book store after they shop for comic books, she also has a knack for sniffing out great books in dusty, dark corners where no one else thinks to look.

In short, Olive has settled into life in 4A easily.

But none of them, except Sheldon, really know her.

XXX

"Stop. Stop."

"You ok?" Penny's blonde ponytail bobs as she swirls to face Olive, who is leaning, red-faced, against a low wall.

"I'm not used to running in this heat," she wheezes.

"Yeah, it's a bitch," Penny laughs, perching on the wall next to her new friend. Olive unzips her green tracksuit top and ties it around her waist, immediately feeling better in just her t-shirt and shorts.

"Can we just sit, for a minute?"

"Yeah, that's fine."

They sit in silence for a moment, before Penny gets up the courage to ask what's been plaguing her.

"Why Sheldon?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well…everyone_ likes_ you. And I mean everyone. So, since you said you haven't changed since you were fifteen, how come you couldn't have had your pick of guys then?"

"I did have my choice. But I didn't understand them. And they didn't understand me. None of them did. This probably won't make sense but…Shelly felt safe to me. I relaxed around him. It was easy."

"No, no that makes more sense to me than you could ever imagine," Penny says slowly, thinking of Leonard. He's safe. Their relationship is easy, most of the time. Does that mean that the can end up like Olive and Sheldon one day? Happy, blindly unquestioning? Completely trusting?

"Ok, I'm ready to go again."

Penny nods, hops off the wall, shoves her iPod earbuds into her ears. She has a lot to think over. Olive slips her headphones over her own ears, lets the music fill her up. Wonders contentedly how she could have wasted all that time.

XXX

The guys, Penny, and Olive are all over at 4A watching _The Time Machine_. Again.

"I think that would be so scary," Penny whispers when George is stuck inside the mountain, "all alone, inside all that rock."

"This movie is horribly inaccurate," Sheldon tuts, "that mountain, assuming it was in fact a _mountain_, would not have eroded in that time-,"

"Shhh!" Leonard urges.

Sheldon falls silent, folds his arms across his chest in an irritated fashion.

Olive sees his fists are clenched tight. It's what happens when all that information in his head is straining to get out. At least he doesn't have any facial ticks yet. That happens when it gets _really_ bad. She curls into him, rests her head on his shoulder, and feels all the tension ebb out of him.

When the commercials come on, Howard jumps out of his seat.

"Who wants popcorn?"

There's a chorus of agreement, and he goes over to the kitchen and shoves a few bags into the microwave.

"Can I have salted?"

The voice is alien to Olive. She has never heard it before.

"Who was that?" She asks bemusedly, searching the room with her eyes. Everyone is staring at Raj, varying degrees of shock clouding their faces. She turns to see him clap a hand to his mouth, as much shock in his eyes as anyone else's.

"Are you drunk?" Leonard asks carefully.

Raj shakes his head, very slowly, left and right.

"You talked. And there are _two_ girls here," Howard says, as if he is narrating.

"Thank you Howard," Leonard says sarcastically, rolling his eyes, "Raj, can you do it again?"  
"Hello," he squeaks.

Penny rushes over and hugs Raj. Olive is quick to join in.

"Hi Raj!" Olive cries, shaking his hand a little too emphatically.

"Hello Olive," he replies, delighted, "I am talking to you!"

"Yes you are, sweetie," Penny smiles broadly, kissing him on the cheek.

"Hello Penny!" Raj leaps out of his seat and hugs Penny, then Olive, and then runs to hug Howard, but stops himself.

"The movie is starting again," Sheldon informs them all, apparently unfazed by Raj's newly discovered ability to speak in the presence of women, although he does make a mental note to put it in his next email to Leonard's mother. She will probably find it interesting, from a neuroscientist point of view.

Olive didn't know what the term "smiling from ear to ear" meant until she saw Raj smile. As he takes his salted popcorn from Howard, he is still smiling. Olive sits back down next to Shellybear, in the place she has come to think of as her spot.

"Morlocks scare me, Shelly," she laughs, "protect me?"

Sheldon makes a mental note to tell her later that he, too, is terrified of Morlocks. He can also tell her about the time they bought the time machine from this movie. She'll be so interested…all thoughts of the movie and emails to Leonard's mother flee his mind and all he can think of is Olive.

The funny thing is, he doesn't mind.


	5. Bargains

_A/N: A few days ago, a friend turned me onto the band Augustana, particularly their song "Boston". I loved them and bought "Can't Love, Can't Hurt" from iTunes. However, their debut album was never released here. Anyway, I listened to "Boston" on youtube and, being the nerd that I am, I immediately recognised it as the song Leonard was singing in "The Fuzzyboots Corollary". That's why, if you hadn't already worked it out, I included a few references to them. Anyway, enjoy!_

Chapter Five: Bargains

When Leonard gets home one Tuesday afternoon, Olive is sprawled across the couch, eyes closed, with her headphones clamped onto her ears. She is singing quietly, badly. Leonard drops his keys into the bowl by the door, sets his messenger bag down on an office chair.

"Fire, burning me up, desire, taking me so much higher…."

Leonard recognises the song.

"And leaving me whole." He concludes for her.

She opens her eyes, shocked.

"How long have you been there?" She gasps.

"A few seconds," he says smugly, wandering over to the fridge and grabbing a carton of milk and the first box of cereal that comes to hand, "Augustana. _Fire_. One of my breakup songs."

"Oh, right," suddenly she frowns, "wait, where's Shelly?"

"He went to the comic book store with Raj."

"You didn't go?"

"No. I have a date with Penny tonight. But Sheldon should be back any minute-,"

As if on cue, Sheldon stomps in the door, muttering to himself. Leonard rolls his eyes, pours himself his bowl of cereal and sits down to eat. Olive stands up, puts her hands on Sheldon's shoulders, looks into his eyes.

"What's wrong Shellybear?"

"Wolowitz bought the comic book that I needed for my Superman collection."

"Buy it on eBay," she shrugged, "they have _everything_."

"Well then I don't get to stumble across it by chance. I don't get to feel excitement, desire, and then the satisfaction that comes from having purchased said item, and-,"

"It'll pop up again," she insists, taking his hand and dragging him over to the couch, "come on! New Doctor Who!"

"Oh, I'd forgotten. Good," Sheldon's bad mood disintegrated as he settled down in his spot, ready to criticize the new doctor, "oh, I almost forgot, the university is hosting a dinner dance function. I wouldn't go, but I'm given to understand that there will be a number of preeminent physicists in attendance, with whom I would love to discuss-,"

"Shelly, Shelly," Olive laughs, "yes, I'll go."  
"How do you know I was going to ask?"

"Call it intuition."

"Perhaps I was going to-," Sheldon stops mid-sentence, a look of utter horror passing across his features, "dear lord, what have they done to the theme tune?"

XXX

Sheldon and Olive are sitting up in bed late that night. Sheldon is reading some physics paper or other, adding the occasional note, letting out the occasional sigh or _hmph_. He tried to explain some of the theories to Olive, but it was all gibberish to her, so now she is curled up with _Son of a Witch_, the sequel to _Wicked_, and slowly losing her respect for Dorothy.

"Hey, Shelly, when did you say this dinner-dance was?"

"I didn't," Sheldon says calmly, "but it's on Thursday evening."

"What? That's only two days!" She hits him with her book playfully. "What am I going to wear?"

"The dress code is formal," Sheldon replies, not taking his eyes from the paper.

"Formal? Never mind me, what are _you_ going to wear?"

"I haven't thought about it."

"Of course you haven't!" She flies out of bed and scurries across the carpet, throwing Sheldon's wardrobe door open. She pulls out a stack of layered tees, flips through them, saying "no" to each one. Retrieves a church suit – never worn - in an ugly bottle green colour and visibly shudders before throwing it on the "no" pile. Finds more outfits, none of which adhere to the "formal" requirement.

"We are going to have to go shopping tomorrow," she huffs, replacing the clothes and then climbing back into bed, "when do you finish work?"

"I can be finished by lunch," Sheldon says, closing the paper and setting it on the bedside table, "I am not needed after that."

"Oh, ok. I'll swing by around two to pick you up."  
"Why don't you come and have lunch with Leonard, Raj, Howard and I?"

"Sure, I'd love to. Wait, am I allowed?"

Sheldon raises an eyebrow.

"If you weren't, wouldn't you have come anyway?"  
"You know me too well."

"Yes. I do."

XXX

"Who's this, Coopah?"

"I'm Olive Morrison," she holds out a hand to the stranger, "I'm his girlfriend."

Kripke pales.

"Woah, you can stand him?"

She wants to hit him.

"I can actually. I can't stand_ you_ though."

He's about to come back with some witty retort, but there's fire in her eyes that even he can see. He scuttles away, spiderlike, glancing back at her every few moments, unguarded curiosity clouding his smug features.

Olive sits back down, picks up her fork. There's silence for a moment.

"Lunch here is awful," Leonard supplies, seeing Olive picking at her food.

"Its fine," she says quietly, distracted. Even Sheldon can see the frown grazing her pretty features. He wants to hold her, tell her it's ok, whatever is bothering her, she's ok. But he can't – not here. She is like a cherished memory – sharing it with others would tarnish it. That memory is _yours_, and no one can take it, ridicule it, rip it up into little pieces (Sheldon learned that the hard way).

"Are you ready to go?" He asks her.

"Yeah."

They get rid of their leftovers and then Sheldon leads her back through the maze of corridors to the parking lot. They get into Olive's old mini. The minute the doors are closed, Olive puts her face in her hands and rests it on the steering wheel.

"Are you alright?" Sheldon asks carefully.

"It just kills me," she says quietly, "how mean people are to you. Your colleagues. People who don't even know you. Even your friends, sometimes."

Sheldon processes this information for a minute.

"But _you_ love me."

Olive stares at him, her heart swelling. She does love Shelly; he makes even the most complicated things simple. It doesn't matter what other people think – she and Shelly are happy and in love, and no one can take that from them. You can make someone tell you their secrets, but you can't read their mind. You can't really _know_ someone until they choose to let you into their head. And Sheldon lets no one into his head, so no one knows him, therefore…

"Their opinions mean nothing," she realises.

Sheldon smiles. And it's a real smile, not the tight, terrifying thing that Leonard and the guys are always laughing about.

XXX  
The mall was horrendously busy for a Wednesday afternoon. It was only when Olive and Sheldon got inside that it became clear why – it was a fifty-percent-off-everything sale day.

"Come on," Olive grinned wickedly, "the violence of paintball's got nothing on this."

She grabs his hand and suddenly he is being dragged through the throng. Ahead of him, Olive ducks and weaves and dodges expertly around shoppers, pushchairs, huge shopping bags. Sheldon, however, is moving with far less grace – treading on feet and tripping over people, and eventually the crowd just seems to decide to get out of his way.

She pulls him into a shop selling men's suits called "Suits you". It takes Sheldon a moment to appreciate the humour, and when he eventually gets it he laughs in his cute way, attracting a few stares because, to everyone else, he's laughing at nothing.

"Well, what do you like?" Olive asks, waving a hand over the store.

"I…don't know…" Sheldon browses the racks, completely caught off guard. He is pushed and shoved as he tries to look at clothes. Olive was right – this world is hectic. This is a world of smarmy shop assistants, fraught mothers and desperate sale shoppers. He lives in a world structured around rules, logic, order. This…this is anarchy.

"Shelly, honey," he feels a comforting hand on his arm, looks up into Olive's caring but amused eyes, "do you want me to pick something out for you?"

"Yes please," he says quickly, smiling with her.

She moves around the shop as if she is floating, picking up various suits, ties, shirts, overcoats. Barely five minutes have passed before she returns. She drops the pile of clothes into his arms, ordering him to go try them all on.

With the craziness of sale day, it seems that very few people are actually bothering to try on clothes. Olive perches on a small chair just outside the changing rooms, leafing through a conveniently abandoned magazine.

It turns out Shelly looks good in a suit – a nice suit, anyway. He looks horribly uncomfortable, but he'll forget about that once he's been distracted by all those "preeminent physicists." Her favourite is a plain black suit – well cut, it fits him perfectly. Paired off with a crisp white shirt and a royal blue tie, he looks well turned out and wealthy, but still finds a way to look like himself. The best part is that everything only costs fifty dollars – Olive loves sales.

Next, they go to get something for Olive. Sheldon trails after her in and out of various shops, until she finally tries on a few things. An off-the-shoulder delicate cream gown. A knee-length black dress, cinched at the waist with a deep purple sash and a puffball skirt. Sheldon's favourite – and the one she buys – is a floor length, plain black dress. It has a round neckline, and the fabric of the bodice clings to her curves. The skirt is made of a light material that she can't quite place. To Sheldon, she is even more beautiful than usual.

While she pays, he catches her hand, pulls her round to face him, and kisses her.

"What was that for?" She asks, smiling.

"Coming back. Agreeing to go to this intolerable event…" he pauses, a smile playing on his lips, "hating Kripke."

"I suspected he was the Lex Luthor to your Superman, the Magneto to your Professor X."

"You would be correct."

"That's twenty five dollars," the clerk interrupts.

"Seriously?"

"Yup."

"Wow, that's amazing," Olive gushes as she pays, "I just love sales."


	6. An Occasion

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

_A/N: The channel I watch Big Bang on is taking its regular series break (ugh) which means I'm only about thirteen episodes into this series and the rest won't be shown until summer. As a result of this, I don't feel I know enough about Bernadette to write her. So, for the purposes of this story, let us assume that Howard either a) never got together with Bernadette, b) Howard was with Bernadette and messed it up or c) he hasn't met her yet. Whatever works for you. Anyways, enjoy!_

Chapter Six: An Occasion

Sheldon and Olive are riding to the dinner-dance in Leonard's car, and Olive is getting ready with Penny, who is going with Leonard. They are in her apartment, an hour before they are due to leave, doing each other's hair.

"You know, you have really pretty hair," Penny mused, fastening a clip in the shape of a butterfly into Olive's soft bun, "you should wear it down more often."

"I know, but it just gets in the way and I can't be bothered with it," Olive shrugs, swapping places with her friend so that she was standing and Penny sitting, "I sometimes think I should just get it all cut off."

"No, don't do that," Penny urges as Olive starts taking a brush through her mind-length blonde hair.

"What about you? Ever considered getting your hair cut? Or growing it for that matter."

"I had rapunzel hair when I was little," Penny smiles faintly at the memory, "literally. It was really long. But never again."

"What happened?" Olive asks with unguarded curiosity, pinning up the top layer of Penny's hair so she can straighten the layer beneath.

"This boy in my class, I can't even remember his name now, got all this gum in it and they had to cut off all one side. It looked stupid, of course, so they cut the other side and I looked like a boy for a year," Penny giggles, but she can't forget how awful that year was for her, "after that, I didn't have it too long. But not short either."

"My hair was always like this," Olive tells her, finishing up with the bottom layer and letting the top layer down, "although I did go through a phase of dying it blue and telling my mom it was a sign of my defiance against her feminist ideals."

"You don't agree with feminism?"

"Yes, I do, but I told my mom I didn't."

Penny senses this is a delicate subject, deftly sidesteps it altogether.

"You really seem to fit in with the guys. I mean, sci-fi movies and comic books? Talking to you, you don't seem like the type."

Olive takes a small part of Penny's hair, braids it, and wraps it around her head like a hair band.

"Well, I'm no captain sweatpants, that's for sure. But not everyone who likes that stuff is so cliché – I mean, your new favourite movies are _Lord of the Rings_, are they not?"

"You got me there," Penny grins. She, Olive and the guys had had a Lord of the Rings marathon the previous night and Penny had been completely enchanted, "but I still love _Little Miss Sunshine_."

"We'll have to watch that sometime," Olive suggests, "when the guys aren't around, I mean. I don't think they'd be interested."

"No, you're probably right."

"Is this how you wanted your hair?" Olive asks carefully. Penny sits up a little so that she can see into the mirror.

"It's perfect!" She gasps. "Thank you. I'm gonna go put on my dress, ok?"

"Sure."

Olive separates Penny's and her own respective hair products and packs them away into their bags while Penny disappears into her bedroom. When he emerges, she's dressed in a long, flouncy, empire-waisted, dusty-rose coloured dress. She looks gorgeous, but the dress isn't really Olive's style.

"Which shoes?" Penny holds out two pairs of heels. The first is a pair of white slingbacks, the second satin pink with a small rose on each toe.

"The white ones," Olive says immediately, "the other ones would just be too much pink."

"Yeah, I see what you mean. Thanks. Bedrooms all yours, when you want to change."

"Ok." Olive goes into Penny's bedroom and is a little unnerved to find what seems like thousands of care bears staring at her. For a moment, she understands why Sheldon is terrified of bears. Her dress is on the bed, where she left it. She squirms into it, afraid of ripping the delicate fabric, and then pulls on her shoes, which are flat and fairly plain because she's already tall, and the dress is floor length so no one will see them anyway.

"You…look amazing!" Penny gushes when she goes back into the living room. "Ok, just a little bit of makeup and then we're ready."

Olive doesn't really like to wear makeup, sees it as a waste of time. But she puts on a little bit of her favourite mascara, lip gloss, and foundation.

"Done?" Penny asks cheerfully. The blonde loves a formal party; they're so much more enjoyable than those drunken blurs that her friends always hold. They're sophisticated, they serve white wine in tall glasses, and they make her feel so grown up.

"Yeah," Olive smiles with her, "let's go."

Leonard and Sheldon are waiting for them in the hallway, apparently just having left the apartment.

"Oh, good timing," Olive smiles, grabbing Sheldon's hand, "you're looking sharp, Shellybear."  
"You look beautiful, as ever," Sheldon says, a tad stiffly, granted, but that's just Sheldon.

"You look good to, Leonard," Olive says sincerely, taking in Leonard's ancient brown suit and spotted tie, "very…you."

The group goes down the stairs and climbs into Leonard's car. The journey to the function hall is short and filled with companionable conversation. A short flight of stairs, and they enter the function through elegant doors. It's not the most expensive of halls, but Caltech is horrendously underfunded and it's dressed up all the same. White tablecloths cover cheap linoleum tables, large paper napkins are folded into swans.

This is a party of physicists, and most of the partygoers are dressed like Leonard – in clothes that look older than Olive, dug out of the back of wardrobes and worn for the first time in years, and probably the last time for years to come. However, there are a few exceptions. Leslie Winkle, who Shelly has painstakingly described for Olive, looks good in a short, flirty red dress. Kripke actually cleans up good, like Sheldon. And Olive is surprised how good Raj looks, when he appears out of the crowd.

"Hello Olive," he says, and then beams because he was able to greet a woman without being drunk, "Sheldon, Penny, Leonard. Howard was here somewhere, but now he's gone."

"Are you here with a date, sweetie?" Penny asks.

"Yes," Raj says, and then smiles even wider, "she's…" he looks around, and then reaches into the crowd and pulls out a mid-height curvy girl with short red hair and a cheeky smile. "This is Lola Gregory. Lola, meet Olive, Sheldon, Penny, and Leonard."  
"Hi," Lola smiles shyly, shaking each of their hands in turn.

"There's Howard over there. Howard!" Leonard calls, and Sheldon spots him too. He moves through the crowd towards them, a very tall, very skinny, very pretty girl trailing him, looking bored.

"Hey guys," he grins, "great part, huh?"

"We only just got here," Leonard tells him, "who's this?"

"Oh, this is Marcy Grossman, my new special lady."  
"Hi," Marcy says, although she looks less than thrilled to be Howards "special lady".

The guys and Olive say hi, but Penny has a look of shock frozen on her face.

"Howard, _the_ Marcy Grossman? _When it's cold outside, she's the month of May_?" Penny asks forcefully. Howard pales.

"Oh, you remember that, huh?"

Marcy blushes. Howard blushes. Penny hides a smile. Olive, sensing that she is not part of this, pulls Shelly out onto the dance floor.

"You know I can't dance," Sheldon says, panicked.

"Just follow me," Olive says smoothly, putting her hand on his shoulder. They fall into a slow waltz with the few other dancers. There is a string band playing in the corner. Glancing over, Sheldon recognises Leanne Rodiek from the physics department (she's a decent physicist, a step better than Leslie Winkle, anyway, in that she's an advocate of string theory rather than that hokum quantum loop gravity), and Dean something-or-other, that ape from engineering that Wolowitz goes to bars with sometimes. As for the other two, he can't recall seeing them before.

"Look! It's George E. Smith!" He mutters excitedly to Olive. She turns quickly and sees the eighty-year-old man Shelly is pointing at.

"Who?"

"George E. Smith. He won the Nobel Prize in physics last year jointly with Willard Boyle. He invented the ___imaging semiconductor circuit." _

"Do you want to go and talk to him, Shellybear?"

He nods quickly.

"You go," she laughs, and he scampers off towards the scientist, warp speed. The second he is gone, she is intercepted by Wolowitz.

"May I have this dance, m'lady?"

Olive chuckles.

"I would be honoured."

Across the room, Penny takes this opportunity to find out how Wolowitz got his high school crush to come tonight.

"You don't look happy to be here," she tries.

"I'm not," Marcy huffs, sitting down on a spindly chair, "I only came because I felt bad about what I did to Howard in high school."

Raj and Lola appear from nowhere, laughing about something or other. They sit down at the table with Penny and Marcy. There's a basket of bread in the centre, and some waiters are circulating trays filled with glasses of cheap wine, but dinner is yet to be served. Howard also materialises, dragging Olive behind him.

Howard smiles at the group in greeting and sits down next to his "special lady". Olive sits down next to Penny, leaving a seat open for Sheldon. She notices that Penny has done the same for Leonard. Where _is_ Leonard?

"So what do you do, Lola?" Penny asks the redhead politely.

"I'm an astrobiologist," Lola says shyly.

"Wow. That sounds fancy." Penny says sincerely.

"Not really. It's the study and theorization of extraterrestrial life, ranging from just bacteria to sentient or even sapient beings..." Lola launches into a complicated description of her work with unguarded enthusiasm. It's clear she loves her job. Olive decides that if Raj's relationship with Lola goes much further, he's going to become as much of an alien nut as her; out with his telescope at three o' clock in the morning, trying to spot UFOs. After all, who could see the passion in Lola's eyes when she spoke of astrobiology and not be swayed by it?

The clinking of a spoon against a glass cut Lola off mid-sentence. Everyone turned around to see Dr. Gabelhauser standing on the impromptu stage behind a microphone.

"May I first say how good it is to see how many people have turned out tonight, most notably Dr. George E. Smith." A smattering of applause as Dr. Smith stood up, raising his hands in greeting. "Well, without further ado, the buffet is now open," Gabelhauser announces, gesturing towards a long table stacked with food, "please enjoy the rest of your evening."

The gentle hum of conversation returned. There was a mass exodus from tables as people moved towards the buffet. A good number of people, having had Dr. Smith's location pointed out to them, approach the Nobel prize winner.

Sheldon joins Olive at the buffet.

"A buffet? These are spawning grounds for disease and pestilence. I will not eat from-,"

He is silenced as Olive shoves a piece of chicken into his mouth. He chokes for a moment, then swallows and is about to begin ranting. But she's laughing and, despite himself, he laughs with her.

"Well, since you've already been exposed to those _diseases and pestilence_, I guess you can enjoy the food now."

Sheldon blinks, processing.

"I suppose you're right." He picks up a plate and moves along the buffet. When he returns to the table and settles into his seat beside Olive, he only has a small portion of salad on his plate. Olive smiles, rolls her eyes. Some things never change.

"Where's Leonard?" Penny asks, looking around. "I haven't seen him since we got here."

"You know, I'm glad you asked me to come. This is fun," Olive mutters to Sheldon, so quietly that no one else can hear.

"I'm sure the whole event would have been intolerable had I not," Shelly says, and Olive, translating quickly from Sheldonese to English, takes that as a sign of his agreement.

She realises everyone else has fallen silent. They are all staring towards the dance floor; where Leonard is locked in an intense kiss with...Leslie Winkle?

"That bastard," Penny whispers, standing and fleeing the function hall.

"I'll go check she's ok," Olive says, throwing down her napkin and chasing Penny out of the doors and into the night air. Penny is sitting, hunched over, on one of the stone steps with her face in her hands. Olive sits down next to her, puts a comforting arm around her petite shoulders.

"I thought he was different," Penny says through tears, "I thought he was a _good guy_. I'm so stupid."

"Penny, this isn't your fault. It's not your fault you keep picking the wrong guy."

The door to the function hall opens, and sound washes over them. Someone rushes out, and when the door closes, silence. Olive turns. It's Leonard.

"Penny," he says breathlessly, "that wasn't what it looked like. She threw herself at me, I-,"

Penny stands up, the anger in her eyes making Leonard remember the junior rodeo threat. She turns and, without a word, walks down the steps away from him.

"Tell Shelly that I'm taking Penny home," Olive says icily to Leonard, before rushing after her.

"Penny, wait," Olive calls, hurrying along after her friend who, despite her height, has a long stride and can walk very quickly.

"No. I'm going home. I need time to think."

"I'll come with you."

"Olive," Penny suddenly turns to face the brunette, "I appreciate that you care. You're a good friend. But I don't like people seeing me cry, and I need to be alone right now."

Olive notices that Penny is fighting back tears, and nods slowly.

"Ok. Well, I'll see you?"

"Yeah."

Penny turns and walks away along the pavement, and despite the neon lights she is quickly swallowed by darkness. Olive turns back towards the function hall, suddenly feeling very weary.

_A/N: To all Leonard/Penny shippers, I'm sorry! But don't worry – all is not lost between them :D. _


	7. Low fat ice cream

**Disclaimer: Not mine**

Chapter Seven: Low fat ice cream

A knock at the door. Penny won't answer. She buries her face in the cosy patchwork quilt covering her legs, tries to clear her face of tears a little. Olive opens the door anyway.

"I come bearing ice cream," she says solemnly, holding a tub.

"Hey Olive," Penny says quietly. Olive marches into the kitchen, grabs a spoon and throws the ice cream at Penny.

"What is this?" Penny asks, appalled, after tasting the ice cream.

"Low fat," Olive says, "a tip I got from _Friends_. Save the full-fat stuff for the terminal cases."

"Oh, believe me, Leonard and I _are_ terminal. Actually, we're over already."

"Listen," Olive begins tactfully, "I was talking to him, and I think that you should give him a chance to explain."

"Really?" Penny asks, suddenly hopeful. For all her anger act, she had thought she was in love with Leonard. If there is any chance that this was not his fault, she is going to grab onto it for dear life.

"Really," Olive nods, "but...maybe you should cool off a little first. Let's watch a movie, or go shopping, whatever. I have to cheer you up."

"Do you?"

"Yes, of course. You're my friend."

Penny smiles. It's nice to have a friend who cares about her.

"Ok. Let's watch _Little Miss Sunshine_."

XXX

Olive, who still thinks Penny looks down, invites her to come thrift-store shopping the following day, and Penny happily agrees. They pick Sheldon up at Caltech after he's done with work, but apparently his mobile is off, so they have to go inside to get him.

They ask directions at the front desk, and then begin working their way through the maze of corridors. Olive's eyes are drawn into the various labs and offices, expecting to see something cool and exciting – a robot, an explosion, purple smoke floating from a test tube and an evil-genius type guy laughing maniacally – but it's all disappointingly humdrum. Mostly people standing around, staring at grease boards full of equations or hastily scribbling things down.

Leslie Winkle, emerging from her office, is dismayed to see Middle Earth Barbie and her brunette friend walking towards her. She contemplates simply passing them by, but she has to say _something_...

"Penny," she says quietly, "can I talk to you?"

"I suppose..."

Olive senses this is her cue to leave.

"I'll just...go on and find Shelly." She walks away, hears them go into Leslie's office. Finds Sheldon's office after asking for directions, twice.

"You busy, Shellybear?" She asks, popping her head around the door. He's staring at his board, and makes no sound but holds out his arms and she goes to his side silently, staring at his complicated work.

He scribbles something down, and takes a deep breath.

"Ok, I'm done."

"Ready to go?"

"Yes." He slips into his jacket and starts packing stuff into his messenger bag. Penny appears at the door, looking...weird.

"How'd it go?" Olive asks, scooping a ton of pens into a desk tidy.

"Um, it was ok. Leslie said it was her fault, that she was drunk and _she_ kissed _him_, and that he tried to push her away... I should have listened to him! I should have trusted him. I'm a horrible person!" She slumps down on the chair opposite Sheldon's desk and bursts into tears. Sheldon slings his messenger bag across his shoulder, looking decidedly uncomfortable about having a weeping woman in his office.

"This. Is. Not. Your. Fault." Olive urges.

"I shall wait in the car," Sheldon tries, but Olive catches his hand and scowls playfully at him.

"You shall do no such thing."

"Will," he says quietly.

"What?"

"You _will _do no such thing."

Olive rolls her eyes, smiling, and then turns her attention back to Penny, who is hastily drying her eyes.

"I'm OK. I'll talk to Leonard later. Let's go shopping!"

For the next few hours, Sheldon finds himself being dragged in and out of various thrift stores, made to carry bags and comment on outfit after outfit. When they get back into Olive's mini, Sheldon is concerned by the amount of excess weight all of their purchases have created in the car.

When they arrive back at 4A, Leonard is lying flat on the sofa, depressed, with _Fire_ playing softly on the CD player.

"Leonard," Penny says softly. He looks up, shocked. "Can we talk?"

"Sure!" He leaps to his feet.

"We'll go over to my apartment." Penny leads the way and he follows wearing only socks, too caught up in his thoughts to remember shoes. Olive puts her bags in the bedroom, and then curls up next to Shelly on the sofa to watch the new series of _Stargate Universe_.

"Today was pleasant," he says stiffly, throwing an arm around her shoulders.

"Yeah, it was. Oh, I have a surprise for you!" She pauses the recorded episode and disappears into the bedroom, returning with a single bag. "This is for you."

He takes the bag and retrieves a heavy object wrapped in tissue paper. He pulls away the delicate wrapping carefully, like a child opening a Christmas present oh-so-slowly. When he sees the anodized silver Darth Vader piggy bank, his eyes widen in surprise. Olive giggles, and placing her hand over his tips it upside down.

"It's from 1981. I dug it up in that last store, when you were critiquing that yellow dress that Penny was trying on."

"Thank you," he says sincerely, setting it down and kissing her.

"You're welcome, Shelly," she says happily, and settles down to watch TV. When the episode is finished, they decide to bake a cake.

It turns out Sheldon can make a mean sponge cake, and Olive ends up just watching the master at work. Although she does get to ice the cake. She covers it with pink frosting, and uses purple to write "Olive and Shelly" on it. Then, like the child she still is inside, uses a spoon to eat the remaining icing.

They each have a slice, and then fall into bed, tired and contented.

XXX

The following morning, when Olive comes into the living room for breakfast, Penny is already sitting at the counter with a phone clutched to her ear. She is ordering a new bed.

Olive pours herself a glass of orange juice and smiles knowingly. She is guessing that things are back to normal with Leonard and Penny.


	8. Awakening

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

Chapter Eight: Awakening

It is one day in late June, a few weeks before Olive's twenty-ninth birthday, and Sheldon feels…odd. He feels as though he's just woken up from some prolonged waking dream. And, he supposes, that's what people have been expecting of him. They've been expecting him to wake up and be "himself" again. And he has woken up, and he is "himself" again, but not in the way that they think. He hasn't been himself since she left fourteen years ago. He threw himself into his work, and became content.

He told her once, all that time ago, that he had never been truly happy until he met her, and he told her that he would never be happy again if she left. After she disappeared, he tried to remember that happiness. He did remember, but it seemed too good to be true. It became a shell of a memory, he forgot happiness.

Now he realises, once again, that contentedness and happiness are two very different states of being.

So he has awoken from his waking dream and found that he remembers. He remembers happiness, he remembers love. He knew he loved her before, but did he really feel it? In any case, he does now. He is struck with such a fierce love for Olive that he surprises himself. He realises that he would do anything for her.

XXX

Olive, after being told by Wolowitz about Shelly's gift issues, told Sheldon that he didn't have to get her anything for her birthday, and she won't get him anything for his birthday either. He accepted this, decided it was a reasonable course of action.

He has changed his mind.

"Leonard, I need you to give me a ride to the mall," he announces one day when Olive is out with Penny.

"Why?" Leonard asks, unwilling to leave his computer.

"I need to buy a birthday present for Olive."

"I thought you weren't going to buy her a present," Leonard is suspicious.

"I changed my mind."

"Can't you take the bus?" Leonard whines.

Sheldon's look says it all.

"Alright, alright." He shuts off his computer, grabs his jacket and his car keys which Sheldon waits impatiently by the door. "What are you in such a hurry for anyway?" Leonard asks as they walk down the stairs.  
"I want my gift to be a surprise, and I can't lie to Olive. The only possible solution is to be back here before she returns so that she doesn't find out we were gone."

Leonard sighs. While Sheldon's relationship with Olive has made him a tad more easygoing, he _is_ still Sheldon.

When they arrive at the mall, Sheldon goes straight to the jewellery store at such a speed that Leonard, with his significantly shorter legs, has to jog to keep up. When he sees what Sheldon is looking at, he nearly forgets to breathe.

"_Rings?_" He hisses.

"Yes," Sheldon says simply, "rings."

"If you give her a ring, don't you think she could take it the wrong way?" Leonard implores. "She might think you're asking her to marry you."

"Well I should hope so," Sheldon blinks, "that is my intention."

XXX

Olive has explicitly told Penny that she _does not want a party_. Instead, Penny has organised a small gathering in 4A, just herself, Sheldon, Leonard, Raj, and Howard. And Sheldon has announced that he's taking Olive out to dinner, too.

When she wakes up on the morning of her birthday, Olive can't help but feel _old_. Just another year and she'll be thirty. _Thirty_. Ugh…

She wants a morning of moping in her pyjamas and dressing gown. She knows that she's not really old. She's not even middle aged yet. But, when she gets into the living room and sees Leonard's present for her on the coffee table, she's gripped with childlike enthusiasm – all worries about age forgotten. She starts humming the happy birthday tune as she turns tail and rushes back to her and Shelly's room to get dressed. She pulls on a pair of jeans, a plain white t-shirt and a comfy sweatshirt covered in love hearts. By the time she returns to the living room, Penny is snuggled on the couch next to Leonard, her own gift next to Leonard's. Sheldon is sitting in his spot, looking tired, as though he hasn't slept well.

Howard arrives a little later, closely followed by Raj with Lola (who is now his official girlfriend). When everyone has arrived, Olive tears into her presents.

From Leonard, Olive receives a cute purple "Elphaba Lives!" t-shirt. Penny has given her a big photo album, and inside Olive finds a few photos of herself with Shelly, Penny, and the rest of the guys. The rest of the pages are blank for her. Howard gets her a basket of bath oils, lotions, soaps and other stuff like that. Raj, however, has come up with the best gift of all.

"Raj," Olive says, disbelieving, "where did you get this?"

"I have a second cousin who's a music producer," he explains. Olive stares at the old photo of Blur, signed by all the band members.

"Thanks!" She gasps, hugging him.

Lola hasn't brought a present, but that's okay because the girls don't know each other that well. Shelly just smiles.

XXX

"It's been a great birthday, Shellybear," Olive says sincerely when they've finished eating that evening, "the first one in a long time when I haven't felt alone."

"Can I give you my present now?" He asks.

"You got me a present?"

He draws out of his jacket a small velvet box, and suddenly Olive knows what's going to happen. He slides off his chair, gets down on one knee.

"Wait, Shelly, what are you doing?" She says, getting worried.

People are starting to watch them. Curious eyes. Everyone loves a good proposal.

"Olive, I talked to my sister about what to say to you. She said I needed "the perfect words." I have researched the subject, and it seems I need only say what I feel. And you make me happy and I love you, and I don't want to lose you again. So, Olive Jane Morrison, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

_A/N: Yes, I know, I'm sorry; I left you with a cliffhanger. But I'll update quick, so no need to worry. Hope you liked. _


	9. Family Meddling

_A/N: No, it's not ending yet, and hopefully not for a while. I just can't let them go!_

Chapter Nine: Family Meddling 

Olive is silent for a moment. She searches Sheldon's eyes and finds pure feeling, raw emotion. Does he love her more than she loves him? A small voice inside her says, _not possible_. Shelly is the best thing that has ever happened to her. He is the one person who understands her. She is the one person who understands him. They belong together…don't they?

"Sheldon…we've not even been together a year, even if you add on the time when we were fifteen."

"So?"

She has an overpowering desire to say _yes_, to see his face light up. Only she can do that to him. But there are all these doubts circling around in her head.

She feels Shelly's hand cover hers, realises she has been shaking.

She knows, suddenly, that all these doubts…they're imaginary. All that matters in she and Sheldon are together.

"Yes," she whispers, "yes, Sheldon, of course I'll marry you."

He beams at her, and she can see nothing of the creepiness the guys described. He slides the ring onto her finger, a simple but beautiful piece of jewellery.

When he stands up, she throws herself at him, and he catches her in his arms. A collective _aw_ goes up around the restaurant, and one couple starts to argue. Then, applause.

XXX

"Penny!" Olive is unable to stop the excitement flowing through her veins. She has abandoned Shelly at the bottom of the stairs in her haste to share the news. She knocks frantically on Penny's door.

"Olive? What is it?" Penny is already dressed in her cosy pyjamas, drowning in one f Leonard's old robes.

"Look!" She shoves her hand into Penny's face.

"Aw, sweetie," Penny takes her hand in order to get a better look at the engagement ring on her finger, "Sheldon asked you to _marry_ him?"

"Yes. Can you believe it?" Olive is giddy like a child. She is five again, at her friend Bella's house, and they are planning their dream weddings. She is seven and she is walking in on her mother gazing at her wedding dress. She is twelve and deciding she is never going to marry. She is thirteen, has just met Marcus Roth, and is changing her mind.

"Actually, I can," Penny muses, more to herself than Olive, "that man loves you, and he's terrified of losing you."

"Can I come inside?" Olive asks. "I have a question for you."

"Sure." Penny stands aside to let her friend enter.

"Well, I was just wondering, since I kind of lost contact with my old friends, and since we've become such good friends since I got here…will you be my maid of honour?" She blurts out the last part so fast that Penny has to ask her to repeat it. When she understands, she breaks out in a smile.

"I would be delighted!"

"Thank you, so much!" Olive has tears in her eyes as she hugs her friend.

XXX

Mary Cooper has been having a relatively average day until Shelly calls.

"You're…doing what?" She says, incredulous.

"I'm getting married."

"You're…getting married?" She repeats, unable to comprehend.

"Yes. I'm getting married." Sheldon sighs and rolls his eyes.

"To who?" Mary's voice is slowly rising in pitch.

"Do you remember Olive Morrison?"

Mary drops the phone.

XXX

_Dear Shelly,_

_We always knew you and Olive were gonna end up together. The whole family's talking about it. Mom and Meemaw are flying into Pasadena to meet her, and Jonny's promised to come back home from New York for the wedding. Anyway, I'm just e-mailing to warn you that mom has a big folder with loads of wedding information in it – planners, florists and the like. And she's expecting you two to come back here to Texas to get married. Oh, and they're bringing some kind of engagement present. I dunno what it is, so don't even bother asking._

_Love, Missy_

XXX

Mary and Sheldon's grandmother arrive the following day, and Shelly, having not picked up Missy's email in time, hasn't warned Olive. She opens the door in a skimpy tank top, sleeping shorts and Sheldon's robe.

"Hello dear," Mary seems unfazed. She knows from Shelly that the girl has been living with him for a few months, and after all the girls that Jonny brought home very little can shock her. As for Shelly's grandmother ("call me Lucille, dear"), well she looks a little more surprised.

"Mrs Cooper," Olive shakes Mary's hand, "would you like to come in? I'll take your bags." She ducks out of the door and grabs their small suitcases. "Leonard's making French toast."

"I can smell it," Lucille says enthusiastically, immediately making a beeline for the kitchen, where she has always felt most at home.

"Nice to see you again, Leonard," Mary says, sitting down on the couch.

"I'll go get Sheldon." Olive practically flees the room.

"Who was at the door?" Sheldon asks as he pulls on his argyle socks.

"Your mother and your grandmother!" Olive explodes, quietly. "You couldn't have told me they were coming, I suppose?"

"Well of course I could, had I been aware," Sheldon blinks. Olive sighs and starts struggling into her jeans.

"Just go see them," she says, "I'll be out in a minute." As Sheldon leaves, Olive quickly pulls on the t-shirt Leonard got her for her birthday and a striped cardigan, drags a brush through her hair, ties it into untidy plaits and slides a purple hair band onto her head to keep them in place.

Sheldon realises when he sees his grandmother just how much he has missed her.

"Meemaw!" He cries, and the old woman exhibits surprising speed by rushing over to him and enveloping him in a hug.

"Shelly!"

"Olive will be out in a moment," Sheldon tells them as Leonard wordlessly hands him a plate stacked high with French toast.

"Shelly, I love you, but I gotta be honest, I never thought you'd find a girl," Lucille says sincerely, guiding him to the couch and sitting down on the armchair, "she must be pretty special."

"She is," Sheldon says, a tad stiffly, "I told you about her in my last letter."

Lucille chuckles.

"That you did, Shelly. That was _all _you wrote about in your last letter. And since then I've just been dying to meet the girl who brings out this side of you."

"Mom, what are you doing here?" Sheldon asks, not being intentionally rude, just being Sheldon. Mary smiles and draws out of her suitcase a bulky ring binder.

"We're here to plan a wedding, Shelly."


	10. Time Paradox

Chapter Ten: Time Paradox

All week, Olive has had to put up with an over-excited Mary Cooper talking at her non-stop. Dresses, centre-pieces, venues, ministers, vows, guests, bridesmaids, maid of honour…Shelly has chosen Leonard to be his best man. No surprises there – Leonard _is_ Shelly's best friend. Olive has called up a few of her old friends and asked them to be bridesmaids for her. Now, as she lies stretched out on the couch with her Shellybear watching _Doctor Who_, is the first time she's just been alone with him for a while.

"There's more work in planning a wedding than I had anticipated," Shelly muses, turning the volume down, "I wish I had a time machine. Then we could just go forward to the actual day of the wedding."

"Time travel is impossible."

Sheldon pauses the tv and stares at her.

"Of course it's possible!"

"Oh yeah?" Olive raises one eyebrow playfully. "And how would you go about building a time machine?"

"Well, if I invented a time machine in the future, I would just come back in time and give it to myself."

"That's a time paradox."

"What?"

"Well, if future you comes back to give present you this time machine, then future you would have no reason to build it. Therefore, the time machine would not exist. And, if it did exist, where did it come from? Did it just materialise?"

Sheldon looks thoughtful for a moment.

"Touché," he says dryly, and then breaks out into a smile. He loves their little debates. Even when he loses.

"Hey, Missy's e-mail said that your mom had some kind of engagement present for us. Do you know what it is?"

Sheldon pauses for a second.

"Actually, I do."

"Well, what is it?"

Sheldon gets up and leaves the room, when he returns he's clutching a small velvet box.

"These have been in my family for many years." He opens the box and shows Olive the diamond wedding ring and plain gold wedding band inside. He hears Olive's sharp intake of breath. "Are you alright?"

"I just…you're too perfect, Shelly. I'm just so happy we're going to be together forever."

He sets the rings down on the table and kisses her. A year ago, he wouldn't have believed this possible. Human relationships? Scary, baffling, confusing. A series of random, disjointed interactions.

But.

He's never been able to forget the summer with Olive. The days at the zoo, the park, the café on the corner, the comic book store. And now, they've already made so many more memories. Meals at the cheesecake factory, at the Chinese, the Thai place. Shopping, the dinner-dance with the university. Maybe he can ride the bus now, now that she's here to hold his hand. When she's there, there's nothing to be afraid of.

"I love you," she whispers.

"I love you, too."

She rests her hand on his chest, and with every beat of his heart she realises the truth of it. He raises his own hand, and they feel each others' heartbeats, and wonder how they could have possibly gotten so lucky.

XXX

Lucille is possibly the sweetest old lady Olive has ever met. It's clear she loves Shelly as much as Olive does. And it's also clear Shelly loves her back. One day, when Olive is out dress shopping with Penny and Mary, Sheldon sits at the kitchen counter and watches his Meemaw cook, just like he used to.

"She's some girl, Shelly," Lucille says as she moves the first tier of the wedding cake from the oven to the counter.

"I love her, Meemaw."

"And that's all that matters."

"What do you think of her?"

"Well I gotta be honest, Shelly, when I first met her it seemed like you two were complete opposites," Lucille starts the complicated and finicky icing process, "I mean, she's impulsive, loud and fun. You're a little more reserved and thoughtful. But then I realised that you need her to drag you out of your shell, and she needs you because, well, just because you're the one she's meant to be with, and she knows it. At the risk of sounding overly sentimental, you two…complete each other."

Sheldon sits in silence, thinking it over. She might be right. He's always thought that the one-person-for-everyone theory was ridiculous, but…

"She understands me."

Lucille stops, rests a hand on her sweet, if a little crazy, grandson's shoulder.

"And that, Shelly, is invaluable."

XXX

That night Sheldon is sitting in bed, reading. Well, more accurately, he is scribbling, making changes to an early draft of his newest paper. Olive stands in the ensuite bathroom with the door open, massaging some kind of cream into her skin. Sheldon starts watching her and finds it hypnotic.

"What are you doing?" He asks, intrigued.

"Its moisturiser, Shelly," Olive laughs. She pads back into the bedroom, releases her hair from its plaits and starts brushing it out slowly.

"What did Leonard say when you asked him to be your best man?" She asks.

"He was either shocked, or nauseated," Sheldon muses. Olive chuckles. Her Shellybear. She just can't wait to marry him…

"Sheldon, can I ask you something?"

"Yes, of course."

"What do you think about having kids?"

Sheldon bites back his usual retort of _I think any number of things. You'll have to be more specific._ He knows what she means.

"I think I would like that. Not at the moment, but in time."

Olive smiles brightly at him, throws her arms around his neck.

"Yeah. In time."

XXX

Leonard can't get over the thought of Sheldon getting _married_. It's…such a grown up thing to do. And Sheldon, in so many ways, still seems like a child.

Will he and Penny ever get married? He just doesn't know. He thinks, maybe one day, when they're closer, and ready, then they will. He hopes.

He finishes proof-reading Sheldon's paper and flicks off the light, retreating into sleep.

XXX

Sheldon likes to watch Olive sleep. She's so perfect.

He brushes a piece of hair out of her face, kisses her gently on the forehead in a tender motion. He thinks she would make a good mother. Will he make a good father? He hopes so. He settles down and organizes his thoughts. Right now, he wants three things. He wants to marry Olive. He wants to win a Nobel Prize. He wants to be the father of Olive's children.


	11. Ink

_A/N: This is kind of a joining chapter. Enjoy!_

Chapter Eleven: Ink

"I should like to take the next two weeks off work. I am getting married."

Doctor Gabelhauser almost chokes on his coffee.

"You're doing _what_, Doctor Cooper?"

"I'm going home to Texas to get married."

Gabelhauser regards the tall, skinny man in front of him. Cooper is a brilliant scientist, however much he hates to admit it. If he weren't, he would have fired him a long time ago. Actually, if he recalled correctly, he did once.

"I'm happy to let you have time off, Doctor Cooper, but I must be honest, I never thought of you as the type to get married."

"Neither did I," Cooper shrugs, "but I am." And then he breaks out into a smile, and Gabelhauser feels as though he is seeing the man for the first time. "I should be back on the twenty-seventh," Cooper adds, before retreating from the room. Gabelhauser sits back in his chair, thinking. _Cooper_? No, it's impossible. He's probably just using the marriage thing as an excuse to get off work for some reason. Even if it is, Gabelhauser doesn't care. He's more than happy to be rid of him for a few weeks.

XXX

"Hey guys, how was work?" Olive asks as Leonard and Sheldon come in the door. Penny has gone to pick up the Thai food already, since between them they have everyone's standard order memorised.

"Oh, it was excellent," Shelly says excitedly, putting his messenger bag down on his desk chair, "I think I'm nearing a breakthrough."

"That's great honey," Olive hugs him, "now come on,we're leaving for Texas tomorrow and we still have to pack."

"Maybe you do," Sheldon huffs.

"You do, too, Leonard." Olive reminds her other roommate as she drags Shelly into their bedroom. Sheldon picks up his laptop from where he's left it on the bed and turns it on.

"What are you doing?" Olive raises one eyebrow. "We're supposed to be packing."

"I am," Sheldon says simply, as he waits for his laptop to power up. Olive shakes her head and opens the wardrobe. She begins to throw clothes into her old suitcase. Jeans, t-shirts, shorts, day dresses, short evening dresses, skirts, cardigans, one of Shelly's old shirts that she likes to sleep in. Across the room, Sheldon is tapping away at his keyboard.

"Alright, its summer so it'll be fairly warm in Texas…then our honeymoon is in Barcelona, so warm again…duration two weeks…" Sheldon is more talking to himself than Olive. He finishes typing in the information. "There, now my computer has assembled a packing list for me." Shelly smiles, proud of himself. Olive laughs, kisses her genius boy. Like Penny says, he is a complete whackadoodle. And she loves all of him, even the weirdness, the neurotic behaviours, and the nerd-ness.

Her mama always used to say, you should never love someone _in spite_ of something. You should love them because of it. Olive never understood that until she met Shelly.

XXX

"Leonard, are you ready to go?" Penny bounds up to her boyfriend's bedroom door and knocks impatiently.

"Almost," Leonard calls back, stuffing the last pair of socks into his suitcase. He drags the heavy bag out into the corridor with some difficulty, and then feels his face redden when Penny lifts it along with hers as if it weighs no more than a feather. She looks cute in a pair of denim shorts and a floral t-shirt under a striped cardigan that she borrowed from Olive. Her blonde hair is tied up in a ponytail underneath her baseball cap.

"C'mon, the guys and Olive are waiting downstairs." Penny leads the way out of the apartment. Leonard picks up his messenger bag from the kitchen counter and remembers to grab his keys on the way out of the door before following Penny down the stairs. The group have decided to drive to Texas. Instead of taking two cars, Howard has volunteered to drive alone on his scooter. Mary and Lucille have already gone ahead by train. Sheldon and Howard are discussing how they are going to get five suitcases into the decidedly small trunk of Olive's mini (it's not like Howard can take his suitcase on his Vespa). Penny solves the problem by shoving and kicking at all of the suitcases until they fit, although Sheldon protests because Olive will be unable to see out of the rear windscreen. Eventually, after some coaxing, some cajoling, and some outright threats, they get him into the car.

"Well, I'll see you there," Howard says, clambering onto his scooter. Sheldon gets into the passenger seat as Olive slides in behind the wheel. Raj, Penny, and Leonard cram themselves into the back seat, which has very little room as it is.

"So, Olive, are you excited?" Penny asks as Olive eases the car out of the space and onto the road.

"Yeah, I am," Olive says sincerely, "I can't wait to be married to my Shellybear. Did you get the dress, by the way?"

"Yeah, I picked it up yesterday."

"And the fit was OK?" Olive gnaws on her lip nervously. Since Mary and Lucille went ahead two days ago to prepare the venue and such, Olive has been a bit of a wreck. She understands where Shelly got his organisational skills now. The two women have been angels – she never would have been able to cope with planning a wedding on her own, even with Shelly by her side.

"It was perfect," Penny says, trying to make her tone reassuring.

"Ok, good." She takes a deep breath.

"What day is the ceremony, anyway?" Raj asks. He's still getting used to this being-able-to-talk-in-front-of-women thing, so he's still fairly quiet around them

"Two days after we arrive," Sheldon supplies, "in the church where Meemaw got married." He feels her hand curl around his, and smiles subconsciously.

XXX

Mary has found places for everyone to sleep. Her extended family has been arriving day and night, and it's been a challenge. She sent her profusely annoying aunt Myrtle and her cousins, Lilly and Joanne, to a nearby bed and breakfast, but she's made an effort for everyone else. She's given up her bedroom to Penny and Leonard, and Olive will obviously be staying in Sheldon's room. She's rooming Howard, Rajesh, her father and her nephew Logan in Jonny's bedroom, and a lot of her female relatives in Missy's. She's commandeered cots and mattresses and fold-out couches from all her friends and neighbours. Her second cousin Mark and his girlfriend have pitched a tent in the back yard, but everyone's here and there's a jovial atmosphere about the place.

In Shelly's bedroom, Olive is finding and laying out the clothes she's going to need for the next few days. Her wedding dress, concealed inside a clothes protector bag, is hanging on the wardrobe handle.

Sheldon watches her from his place perched on the armchair in the corner. As she reaches into the suitcase, the hem of her t-shirt lifts slightly above her hip and he catches sight of a flash of red and black on her skin before it falls back. Since they've established that it's alright for him to touch her, he stands up and eases the t-shirt up slightly. Before she can move, it's too late. He's seen it.

On the small of her back, in indelible ink, is a small red heart outlined in black. In the centre of the heart, written in flowing black script, is one word. _Sheldon_.

"You got a tattoo of my name."

"I wanted to surprise you," Olive chews her lip, "do you like it?"

Sheldon has never understood why anyone would want to scar their bodies for life with tattoos. What if one was to change one's mind? But…this. This is quite different. This is something that will remind him, every time he looks at her, that someone understands him. That someone loves him. He sweeps her into an unexpected kiss, and then Mary calls everyone to dinner.


	12. Promise

_A/N: Thank you to everyone who reviewed, if I didn't reply personally. I know I haven't updated in a while (exams, but they're over now) so here's a new chapter :) I know I should probably end the story soon, but I'm doing at least a few more chapters and maybe more than that. I'm too attached._

Chapter Twelve: Promise

Dinner is a rowdy, but friendly, affair. The various members of the Cooper household first assemble in the kitchen, but it immediately becomes apparent that the room is far too small for all of them. Mary enlists some of the guys to get the folding tables from the garage and, since it's nice out, set them up in the back yard.

Olive is having trouble remembering all the names. It's just a blur of words and faces, but she has Shelly, always standing protectively at her elbow. Until she is grabbed from behind and dragged into the bathroom, and her captor locks the door before Sheldon can follow. She wheels around to face them.

Missy and Sheldon's brother Jonny are laughing hysterically. Olive feels a smile spread across her own face while Sheldon starts banging on the door.

"It's Ok Shelly," she calls, "I'll be out in a minute."

"Alright, so since you are going to be, for all intents and purposes, our sister," Missy begins, "we thought we should tell you some stuff about the family that Shelly would leave out."

"Ok," Olive sits down on the edge of the bathtub, "shoot."

"First, never, _ever_ mention rap music, video games, or the internet to grandpa," Missy says, "He'll hate you forever."

"And he _might_ turn his gun on you," Jonny adds.

"Secondly, never sneeze in the presence of aunt Myrtle," Missy says solemnly.

"She's a germophobe," Jonny supplies, "and if you do, she'll spray you with this anti-bacterial spray that smells _really _bad."

"Thirdly, you'll want to stay away from our cousins Lily and Joanne," Missy tells her, "they're the red-headed twins, and they're the most unpleasant people you'll ever meet."

"And last," Jonny takes a breath, "the whole family is protective of Shelly. You know how…special…he is. That means they're all going to be pretty critical of you at first."

"But we've seen how Shelly looks at you, Olive," Missy says sincerely, "and if _he_ loves you, then the whole Cooper family loves you."

"Well, thanks," Olive says, touched. Jonny smiles and gives her a hug before he ducks out of the bathroom. Olive turns to leave, but Missy catches her arm and closes the door before she can go.

"One more thing," she says, "I saw what Shelly went through when you left all that time ago. I want your _word_ that you won't leave him again."

"I'll never leave him, that's a promise." Olive lifts a hand and draws a cross over her heart. Missy sweeps her into a hug.

"Then welcome to the family."

When they exit, Shelly is standing next to the door, waiting.

"Hey Shellybear," Olive catches his hand, "ready for some food?"

XXX

Dinner is _delicious_.

Penny has never tasted anything so good. It's a simple meal, but Mary and Lucille are geniuses when it comes to the kitchen.

All the male members of the Cooper family, with the exception of Sheldon, have been paying her far too much attention. Mary's second cousin Mark has been hanging on her every word, Jonny has been re-filling her glass with orange juice every five minutes, and Sheldon's cousin Logan practically tackled Missy so that he could sit next to her. Even Sheldon's grandfather has been directing toothless smiles her way.

Leonard is getting all jealous, too. When dinner is over, and the family make their way into the living room, Penny catches Leonard's hand and holds him back.

"Leonard, calm down."

"Those guys are falling all over you!" His voice is whiny, his eyes desperate. He's like a lost little boy, and Penny wants more than anything to comfort him.

"But I don't love them. I love you." Then she freezes.

"You…love me?" Leonard's eyes are calculating, like he's trying to figure out a complex physics problem. Penny takes a deep breath.

"Yes, I do."

"I love you, too."

XXX

Sheldon isn't sure why Raj decided to bring his Wii, but he is grateful that he has.

The entire Cooper family, with the exception of Sheldon's grandfather, is now caught up in Mariokart Wii. Sheldon has drawn up a round-robin competition schedule, and now they have reached the finals.

It's a heated race between Princess Peach (Olive), Yoshi (Raj), Daisy (Lucille), and Wario (Jonny). They are racing on Rainbow Road, a challenge for some, perhaps, but not for this fiercely competitive group.

They are just coming into their second lap when Olive pulls ahead.

"Go Olive!" Penny yells, sparking a cacophony of shouts and applause. Sheldon, had Olive not been there, would have found it intolerable, but now he finds himself joining in. Jonny and Olive are head to head for a lap and a half, and just as they reach the finish line Jonny inches ahead slightly…

…Only to be overtaken by Lucille.

Olive, despite having been beaten, can't help giggling at the sight of the elderly woman throwing her Wii steering wheel in the air and starting to dance a merry jig. Someone puts on an old record, and clapping begins from the assembled family in time to Lucille's quick steps. Olive, grinning wickedly, drags Shelly into the centre of the circle which has formed around Lucille and starts copying the old woman's movements. Shelly, reluctantly, follows suit and before long, everyone in the room is dancing.

For the first time, Olive feels like she is a part of a real family.

XXX

"You know I hate surprises," Sheldon complains bitterly, as Olive leads him down the street. It's a warm night.

"I know," Olive says simply, "but I have a feeling you're going to like this one."

Sheldon buries his other hand in his pocket as they pass by the comic book store. He spent so many hours in there as a boy, and as a teen. He wonders if Stan still works there.

"Wait a moment, Olive. I want to go to the comic book store."

"It'll probably be closed, Shellybear," Olive says, but Sheldon is already in the door. She smiles and follows him inside.

"Sheldon, is that you?" Stan is sitting behind the counter. The store is empty; most of the lights are off. He is reading an old issue of Amazing Spiderman, which Sheldon recognises because it is in his own collection.

"Yes. Hello Stan."

The aging store owner hauls himself out from behind the counter. He has gained a lot of weight but his arms have lost none of their strength, as Sheldon realises when he is drawn into a tight hug.

"And who is this?" Stan asks, eyeing Olive. She is a little insulted that he doesn't remember her, until that look of realisation spreads across his kindly features. "Hang on, do my eyes deceive me? It can't be…Olive?"

She nods delightedly as she receives her own hug.

"I can't believe it, my two best old customers! And, are you back together? At long last?"

"Actually, we're getting married in the morning," Olive informs him. Then a thought strikes her. "Would you like to come, Stan? I'm sure the caterers wouldn't mind cooking for one more person…"

"I'd love to," Stan says, his face lighting up. Olive fills him in on the details, and then she and Shelly continue on their way.

When they reach the park, she stops.

"This is where I wanted to bring you, Shelly."

He looks around in silence, walks through the long grass, past the swings, past the climbing frame. Sits down on the roundabout. She joins him, and he looks at her in the moonlight for a long moment.

"This is the place where we first met."

"Yes, it is."

He lifts his hand and places it on her chest, right over her heart. She copies his action. She laughs as she feels his accelerated heart rate. He smiles as he feels that her heart rate matches his own.

Once upon a time, a million years ago, two fifteen year olds sat on this very roundabout and felt each others' heartbeats. But they both died, when they were separated. Sheldon can feel the ghost of that boy now, settling inside him, replacing the part of his soul that was missing.


	13. Sacred Heart

**Disclaimer: Not mine, unfortunately**

_A/N: I know Mary is Christian, but I have no idea what type of Christian and as far as I know it doesn't tell you on the show (bearing in mind that I've only seen up to about halfway through S3) so for the purposes of this story I just had Olive and Shelly get married at a catholic church._

Thirteen: Sacred Heart

Missy still can't get her head around it. Her twin brother, who is still a child in so many ways, is doing such a grown up thing and getting married.

Olive is…well, how can you describe Olive? She's exuberant, fun, erratic, enthusiastic, quirky…sure she lets her emotions rule her sometimes, but is that always a bad thing? In essence, Olive is a hard person to dislike. Yes, it's true; Missy can't forget how her brother changed after she left. She can't forget the months of watching him fall apart – watching him turn into a being more robot than human – and she can't forget the years of loneliness afterwards. But now Olive is back, and Shelly is happy, and Olive really does love him. Any idiot can see that.

Today is the day of the wedding. Missy is one of the bridesmaids, along with Penny and some of Olive's old friends. They are all wearing their pretty, but not beautiful, purple dresses and waiting outside the doors to the church for the ceremony to begin.

Mary bursts out of a side door, hair askew and looking harassed.

"Time to go," she breathes, "Penny, you're first." She grabs the blonde by her petite shoulders and steers her towards the oak doors. "Will someone get her some flowers?"

Missy looks around, spots the bouquets on a small side table. She quickly distributes the small bunches of lavender to the bridesmaids.

"Alright, when the music starts, you go," Mary instructs Penny, "and then Missy, you count to five and follow her. You two do the same." Mary flashes them all a tired smile, and then ducks into the hall to take her place.

The string band that Mary has hired starts up a slow, wedding-y song. Penny flashes them all a bright smile and, clutching her lavender, opens the door and begins to walk slowly down the aisle.

"Showtime," Missy mutters to herself, as she slowly counts to five and then follows Penny. Everyone is staring at her, and she feels her cheeks redden. She does enjoy being the centre of attention, but this dress makes her look fat…

She reaches the end of her seemingly-eternal trip down the aisle and takes her place next to Penny, who is beaming. As the last bridesmaid joins them, the string band starts up the traditional wedding song and the doors are thrown open to reveal Olive. Missy hears Penny's sharp intake of breath. Olive is, without a doubt, stunning. Her white dress has a simple, wide skirt and a white silk bodice criss-crossed with cream ribbon. Her hair is piled on top of her head, and her veil is so long it brushes the ground behind her.

She reaches the altar and the ceremony proceeds. About halfway through, the door opens and a woman wearing jeans, a pink t-shirt and a black leather jacket enters, red-faced. Olive looks horrified to see her, but the ceremony continues, taking no notice of the interruption.

"I now pronounce you-," the minister cannot finish before Shelly sweeps Olive into a kiss. There is a collective _aww_ from the assembled crowd, and then applause. The noise means that Missy doesn't hear the strangled cry, the thud, the panicked shout. But Shelly, with his Vulcan hearing, or Klingon hearing or whatever (Missy never much cared for _Star Trek_) looks up immediately. Then, exhibiting surprising speed for an indoorsy, Age-of-Conan-playing physicist, he is across the room and by his grandmother's side.

Missy lifts her skirt and runs, as fast as this stupid dress will allow her, to where Shelly is. A small circle of people stand around Lucille, who has collapsed on the floor. Missy pushes them out of the way and crouches down beside Sheldon, who is now carefully measuring his grandmother's pulse.

"Out of the way, out of the way," Olive pushes her way through the crowd, "I was a doctor." She crouches down beside Lucille, gently pushing Sheldon out of the way. She feels Lucille's chest, her face visibly pales. "Does anyone have a cell phone?"

"I do," Missy pulls her Motorola from its hiding place, strapped to her leg under the dress. Olive snatches it and hands it to Sheldon. "Call 911, and tell them she's had a heart attack."

Sheldon feels like he's falling from a great height, although obviously he isn't. His fingers fumble with the phone, and he starts to shiver as he manages to dial the number. Every noise seems muted; every action is in slow-motion. It seems to take an eternity for Olive to compress Lucille's chest, to blow oxygen into her lungs. He finally gets the ambulance service.

"I'm at Sacred Heart Church, on 1302 Broadway, and my grandmother has just suffered a heart attack-,"

"Oh give me that," Olive commands, appearing at his shoulder and snatching the phone from him. She begins to spout medical terms into the mouthpiece which, under normal circumstances, Sheldon would have no trouble understanding. But right now, all he can think about is his grandmother. He turns back to her, only to find that the latecomer has balled up her leather jacket and placed it under Lucille's head to make her more comfortable. Her pink t-shirt has the words "Stop Discrimination against Women" emblazoned across it. His worried mind doesn't make any connection. He gives her a solemn nod, before taking Lucille's frail hand and squeezing it tightly.

When the ambulance crew arrive, the get Lucille onto a stretcher and Shelly follows them into the back of the ambulance, along with Olive (ready to brief them) and Mary. There is no room for Missy, but she convinces them that _it's alright, _and_ she'll make her own way there_. The truth is, she feels like she's about to break down in tears.

When she, Shelly and Jonny were kids, it was always Meemaw's place they went to after school, when their parents were still working. It was Meemaw who picked them up from the trailer when their parents were having especially bad fights. It was Meemaw who took them to the beach in summer when their parents were too busy. They had such a special bond, all of them. Missy feels tears start to spill down her cheeks.

"Hey, hey," Jonny appears from somewhere in the assembled crowd and puts his arm around her shoulders, "it'll be fine. Doctor Olive said her condition was stable."

Missy buries her face in her brother's shoulder and cries for what feels like hours before she manages to calm down and compose herself.

"I'm going to go get my car, and then I'll swing round here and pick you up. We'll go to the hospital, ok?"

Missy nods and watches him dissolve into the slowly dispersing crowd, who have now realised that there is probably going to be no afterparty.


	14. The Waiting Game

A/N: **Sorry I haven't updated in a while – I've had exams and such. And then I was exhausted :) Oh, and Sheldon may seem a little out of character at some points of this chapter, but remember he's sad and afraid. **

Chapter Fourteen: The Waiting Game

It has been the longest day of Sheldon's life.

Alright, technically speaking it has been the same length as any other day, but he feels as though he has been waiting at the hospital for years rather than hours. And he knows the coming night will last just as long.

"She'll be fine," the doctors have assured him, "she just needs some time to recover."

"She'll be fine," Olive has convinced him, "but you need some sleep."

"She'll be fine," his mother has told him, "I'll wait here. You go home and get some rest."

And now he is lying here in the dark, alongside his new wife and one of the only two people in the world who understands him, having been reminded of the fragility of life. Sure, he's had his fair share of accidents; particularly lab accidents. He spent his childhood in and out of hospitals. But the length of his life has never seemed particularly important when compared to the contribution to science he can make whilst living it.

He turns over to look at Olive. She looks so different when she's asleep. He can't even think about losing her again. His mind drifts back to his grandmother, lying in the hospital. Is she lying awake too? Impossible, his brain informs him, she'll be heavily sedated. Fast asleep. Alone.

XXX

Olive isn't really surprised when she wakes up the following morning and finds that Shelly is gone. She knows him. Of course he's not going to listen to instructions at a time like this – especially when those instructions are keeping him away from his Meemaw.

She slides out of the bed and staggers, still half-asleep, to the wardrobe. She blearily pulls out a pair of jeans and a cosy Super Mario hoodie, flicks on her travel iPod dock. Sa Dingding's _Blue Horse _begins to play quietly as she readies herself to face what she knows will be a long day.

After she has brushed out her long hair and tied it into its usual plaits, she takes a minute to steady herself. Lucille is a sweet, kind old lady. Shelly is a surprisingly sensitive physicist. The Coopers are a close and caring family. It's not fair that something like this should happen to them, and Olive knows that there is going to be a lot of emotion in the house today (not to mention a lot of prayer).

She turns off the dock and hurries downstairs, wondering vaguely if there have been any developments during the night and, less importantly, what there is for breakfast. Penny is sitting at the breakfast counter in the kitchen, wearing skimpy pyjamas and fuzzy slippers, sipping at a mug of coffee and reading a glossy magazine. Leonard, fully dressed, is sitting beside her with a copy of _Wired_, eating a bowl of cereal. There is something companionable and very couple-y about the scene, and Olive decides to leave them to it.

She wanders down the corridor and finds Mary Cooper curled in an armchair, sitting across from a woman she hasn't seen before. Actually…maybe she has. Olive recognises that pink t-shirt, that black leather jacket. She recognises that soft hair, soft skin, soft eyes…

It's not just the woman who came late to her wedding.

"Mom?"

"Hey Olive."

Olive blinks at her uncomprehendingly.

"What are you doing here?"

Alice Morrison looks at her daughter, searches her familiar features. She hasn't seen her in about a year, maybe less, but it feels like so much longer.

"Honey, you were getting married," she says carefully.

"I didn't send you an invite."

Alice flinches at her icy tone. Olive stares straight at her, stonily. Alice wants desperately to convey how much she loves her daughter, how much she wanted to be present on her wedding day, how much it hurt her when she didn't receive an invitation.

"I'll just…get out of your way." Alice watches the kind Cooper woman depart wistfully. She has spent her whole life fighting for the cause, ever since she saw Mary Poppins as a little girl and heard those immortal lyrics – _Well done, sister suffragettes_. It has never seemed like a waste before. But now she realises she would trade it all to have what Mary Cooper has – a big and loving family.

"How did you find out, anyway?" Olive asks frostily, crossing her long, pale arms across her chest.

"A blog," Alice admits, "uh…someone called Leonard Hofstadter."

Silently, Olive curses the short physicist.

"I still don't understand why you came."

"You're my daughter," Alice urges, letting herself fall onto a big, squashy sofa, "I wanted to see you get married."

"But you never wanted to see me graduate?" Olive explodes, curling her hands into fists to stop them from shaking so much. "You didn't want to see me play the violin when I got that solo in the school orchestra? After I gave up everything and left with you, just because you're my mom, you weren't there to comfort me when I was sad about leaving Sheldon!"

"It was just a little crush, honey…" But Alice knows it's too late for excuses.

"A little-," Olive can't believe what she's hearing, "did you know, mom, that Sheldon Cooper is the man I just married?" She turns on her heel and flees the room, desperately blinking back tears.

Alice is left in the small, cosy living room, alone. There are crayola drawings on the walls, framed photographs of babies and gap-toothed kids.

"No, I didn't know that," she says quietly, to no one but herself, and then she breaks down.

XXX

Got to find him, got to find him _right now_.

She pushes through another set of double doors, finds herself in a corridor that looks exactly the same as the last three she's been through. Wheels around, almost falls into a heavily pregnant woman. She's suddenly surrounded by people, and the whole room is spinning.

No. _No._ Keep it together. Find him.

She runs, doesn't care about the stares she's attracting. Takes a left, then a right, then two more lefts, just like the receptionist said. Yes, that's it! That's the right unit! She finds the ward they are keeping Lucille in and, after taking a deep breath, steps inside.

Fifteen minutes until the end of visiting time, and he is right there, just like she knew he would be. He is sitting by Lucille's side, holding her small hand in his own, spiderlike fingers. Olive approaches them slowly, carefully. She sees that Lucille is still unconscious.

"Hey Shellybear."

He looks up. Her face is red, like Missy used to look after she'd been crying, and her hair is messy. And her hands are shaking a little.

"Olive," he's sure his voice must express his concern.

"How is she?" She asks.

"Stable," he says quietly, "are you alright?"

"Been better," she gulps down another lungful of air and walks around the bed to him, "it's been a rough day."

"Yes, it has." Sheldon looks down at his grandmother, and offers his free hand to Olive, who takes it gratefully. "But the doctors say she'll be able to come home soon."

"Are you doing alright, Shelly?" She asks genuinely.

"She's my grandmother."

That's all the explanation Olive needs, but he's not finished.

"Olive, I wish to name our first daughter Lucille." He doesn't lift his eyes from his Meemaw while he says it. Olive's heart pounds a little.

"Of course, Shelly," she leans down and kisses him gently, "that's a perfect name."

But one small word that her brain hadn't registered before suddenly becomes clear.

"Wait, _first_?"

"Yes, first." He is totally serious, as always. Olive can't stop herself from giggling, just a little.

"I love you, Shelly."


	15. Back to Normality

**Disclaimer: Still not mine.**

_A/N: I know. I haven't updated in…forever. But I've been away. So here's a new chapter, quite short, really just to get Olive and Sheldon back into life in 4A. _

Fifteen: Back to normality

Back to normality.

God, it's been a strange few weeks.

"Unpack later, Shelly," Olive moans, shutting her book with a snap, "I need to sleep."

"But if I don't unpack now then I will have to leave my suitcase on the floor," Sheldon reasons, "and I might trip over it when I awaken tomorrow morning. Furthermore, all of my clothes are in it, therefore when I go to get dressed tomorrow I will have to rifle through everything, and probably have to iron it again-,"

"Never mind," Olive shakes her head and pulls the duvet up to her chin, "I'll just try to sleep with the light on."

Sheldon watches her squeeze her eyes closed determinedly. Glances back down to the open suitcase on the floor. He takes out a carefully folded outfit, smoothes out the creases, and hangs it up in his wardrobe. He shuts the suitcase, shoving it against a wall to minimise risk, changes into his Wednesday pyjamas and slides between his sheets.

"Dear lord, what have you done to me?" He whispers to her affectionately, assuming that she is asleep. He flicks the lamp off too fast to see her lips curl into a small smile.

XXX

It is a weird, whirlwind kind of a morning. After the days of waking up at nine, ten in the morning, the harsh 6AM alarm comes as a shock to Olive. Of course, Shelly wakes up exactly thirty seconds prior, ready to switch it off as soon as it starts. It is enough to wake Olive though, and it is a testament to her power of will that she is able to drag herself from the warm cocoon of blankets and into the day.

Breakfast is pancakes, and for one awful moment Olive thinks there is no maple syrup.

"Don't worry; I picked some up last night." Leonard produces a brown paper bag from nowhere and draws out a fresh bottle of maple syrup. Olive gives him a delighted hug and cheerfully drowns her pancakes in it. She can tell it's going to be a long, exhausting day. Some people need coffee to get them going; Olive needs maple syrup.

She has the early shift at the cheesecake factory, the same shift as Penny luckily, and the blonde drives them both to work. Olive has forgotten how much she loves driving to work with Penny. The choice of music leaves much to be desired, but when you live with Leonard and Sheldon a chance at having some girl-to-girl chat is invaluable.

Of course, all the other waitresses are desperate to hear about the wedding. They want to see her ring, they want copies of the pictures, they want to know who did the catering and what the cake was like. When they hear about the heart attack they gasp with shock and sympathy. By the fourth telling, Olive is getting bored.

By the time her shift is done, her feet ache and she wants nothing more than to go home and fall into bed, or at least indulge in an evening of TV or gaming. But its only half past two so when she and Penny pass the shopping centre they both know what's going to happen.

Olive ends up with a cute skirt and a new pair of x-hi converse. Penny buys herself a bright day dress and a cosy cardigan. Olive forgets about the pain in her feet when she slides them into her glorious new shoes.

XXX

It is pretty much a normal day for Sheldon.

He spends the morning staring at a whiteboard full of equations. He is interrupted once by Kripke, who stops by to wish him an unheralded congratulation on the wedding, and who asks to see a picture of Olive. Sheldon shows him the one he has on his desk. Kripke, who had been expecting tall, thin, praying-mantis-like, and possible robot-slash-alien, goes away somewhat shell-shocked.

Lunch with Leonard, Raj and Howard passes without incident. Raj and Howard have a rather distasteful debate on which female member of the physics department is "hottest". Sheldon occupies himself by counting how many interesting facts he can tell Leonard about genetically modified fruit before the short physicist exhibits an unusual, angry, or passive-aggressive response. He reaches thirty-nine facts.

Olive turns up at his office just as he is getting ready to leave, around four.

"Hey, Shelly," she says happily, entering without knocking, "had a good day?"  
"Normal," he shrugs.

"Well mine has been excellent," she sits down and props her feet up on his desk, "like the shoes?"

"They appear to be the same as your old shoes," Sheldon says confusedly, pulling his messenger bag onto his shoulder.

"No Shelly," she sighs, rolling her eyes cheerfully, "they're _x-hi_. They're taller than my old ones. And everyone knows when it comes to converse that-,"

A knock on Sheldon's office door cuts her off.

"Come in," he calls, and Dr. Gabelhauser enters.

"Ah, doctor Cooper, I was hoping I would catch you before you-," he catches sight of Olive, "oh, my apologies, I'm Eric Gabelhauser." He approaches the desk, holding out a hand for Olive to shake. She stands and obliges, offering him a smile.

"Olive Cooper," she says, loving the taste of the new name as she says it.

"Cooper? Are you…siblings?"

"I'm his wife," Olive laughs, wrapping her arms around Sheldon, "didn't he tell you about the wedding?"

"Of course, I just- I mean I…I'm sorry, I'm late for an important meeting. Very nice to meet you, and I will speak to you tomorrow Dr. Cooper." Gabelhauser almost runs into the corridor. So Cooper actually _did_ get married? What kind of psychopath would even agree to date the mad scientist? It's…insane. But…maybe he has misjudged Cooper in the past. Maybe…

Nah. Now he's the one being insane.


End file.
